Character Building
by Cait'Elizabeth'Storm
Summary: It's a story of an era. An era filled with Rose/Scorpius arguments, sassy comments, a lot of updates and corrections and Rose Weasley trying to make people forget about her wonky eye. Rose just wants to survive this year. But she finds herself giving out advice, sharing a hate-hate relationship and trying to figure out who the hell she wants to be. This is a year of change. (RxS)
1. 1: the character building one

**the one where Rose is building character**

Shell Cottage had never looked more picturesque. August sea air rustled the various strings of fairy lights hung over trees, the sound of waves crashing against the cliffs and the whole serenity of the calm before the storm. It was an annual family gathering for the Weasley-Potter clan, the special occasion being Victoire Weasley's (the older and most gorgeous cousin) 18th birthday. It was chilly for August and the sun had long ago set, guests, both friends and family, were huddled in the garden in dresses and dress robes and I could spot Teddy Lupin from a mile away. With his bright blue hair standing out amongst the sea of red, blonde and black haired family. And just with one glance at him and Victoire, it reminded me of how alone I was.

Unsurprisingly, I had hidden down the bottom of the garden with a bottle of butter beer and a urge to run home.

If life had taught me anything, it had taught me that I was not doing this whole 'being a girl thing' right. Either that, or I wasn't trying hard enough. Looking around, all my cousins looked amazing. Victoire with her long gown and swishy hair; Dominique with her tomboy looks still pulled off a dress and heels; Lily with her vibrant hair and love for anything sparkly; Roxanne in her small 8 year old 'princess' dress and then... Me, Rose Claire Weasley.

It had taken my Aunt Ginny and Lily three hours to find me so they could attempt to make me look like something that somehow resembled a girl. One threat of a bat bogey hex and a binding charm, I'd been attacked with muggle make up and a huge hair brush. The mane of red, bushy girls had been smoothed down and I'd been forced into a glittery, silver dress and a pair of flats. Sure, I looked better than usual but it still didn't stop me from feeling out of place.

I'd lost track of my best friend and cousin, Albus, a long time ago. Well, if I'm being honest, I'd done it on purpose.

You see, about four years ago, Al and I had boarded the Hogwarts Express all wide eyed and completely excited to have our dreams shit on by none other than Scorpius bloody Malfoy. The spanner in my master plan of how to graduate Hogwarts with O grades. Firstly, he'd actually been more than decent to my cousin, completely killing the stereotype my Dad had put into my head. He joked about seeing our parents on chocolate frog cards and was nice to Al. But to me, it seemed I ground his nerves into tiny, unsalvageable lines. Secondly, the bastard throw yet another plot twist into my life by being sorted into Gryffindor with Al, while I'd been sorted into Ravenclaw with my mother's brain outweighing anything else. And thirdly, we hadn't had a nice thing to say to each other for four years. I thought he was arrogant, pompous and completely unbearable. He thought I was a 'know-it-all' and completely irrational. It was a hate-hate relationship. The only thing keeping us from throttling each other was Al and my best friend, Sophie, fellow Ravenclaw and study partner.

So, anyway, back to the point, I was avoiding him because (for some reason) he'd wangled an invitation for Malfoy to join the party and I wasn't in the mood to fight.

You can imagine my displeasure when Malfoy, in slacks and a dress shirt, appeared next to me, I wasn't exactly best pleased. Although, the sight of Al made me feel a little better.

"I have to say, Rosie, I'm impressed. I didn't think they'd be able to run a hairbrush through your hair without losing the entire thing."  
"You think you're funny, but you're not and it's tragic," I teased, feeling the cold finally. "You should stick to being the mysterious, arrogant one. Leave the humour to someone else, Al."

"So witty."

Correction: it was my cousin (my favourite cousin) Albus Severus who was trying to be witty and failing. Al couldn't be witty. He was too nice. I ignored his comment, instead ignoring Malfoy's presence and saying how Al looking put together once and didn't look like he'd gotten dressed in the dark.

"That was one time!"

Silence settled on the two (correction: three) of us and we all seemed to be staring into the star filled sky.

Update: Scorpius Malfoy was staring at me weird and I didn't like it. He did it often. Like I was some strange puzzle he couldn't understand. Honestly, you'd think I'd sprouted a shark fin and a tail. So, being who I was, I called him out on it. No surprise really.

"Keep looking like that and I'll poke your eyes out, Malfoy."

Charming. But it caught his attention He'd stopped staring at me but now Al was looking at me as if I'd just confessed murder. Honestly, you can't win with him.

Malfoy smirked that annoying, gut-wrenching smirk. "I wasn't looking at you, per se, more your wonky eye."

Literally, he could not sound more bored if he tried.

Arsehole.

My entire life I'd been tormented about my life eye. Granted it was a little bit wonky but there was no need to point it out. I came from a huge family and all my cousins took the piss. It wasn't like my wonky eye was a severe deformity nor did it derive from the rest of my face, it was just a slightly different shape and a pain in the arse for photographs. From the moment we met, Malfoy had pointed out my weakness right off the bat and I was now, actually, contemplating all the ways I could kill him using only fairy lights. Not much to utilise but I'd think of something. Who needs a wand?

"Every time you mention it, I can't stop looking at it," Al cackled and I added him to my hit list. That made two. Now all I needed was James Potter to hop on board and there'd be a massacre on our hands.

"Al, you're in no place to criticise anyone with a name like yours." That was Malfoy and he had a point. I grinned. I'd literally been stood with them for two minutes and we'd already all insulted each other.

"I don't think it's time to disclose any more insults, thank you very much," Al snapped, forever on the defence about his sentimental name. "Vicky's about to blow her candles out."

Al gestured to the hovering cake coming out of the entrance of Uncle Bill's house, it was huge with white frosting and dancing icing statues that had been charmed. The three of us joined the crowd and I found myself squeezed between a besotted Teddy and little Freddie. Vicky was smiling so wide I thought her face would split and in that moment everyone was so happy. Hugo, my little brother, had his muggle camera poised in the air; Mum and Dad were snuggled against each other, Grandad and Grandma Weasley looked on the verge of tears and my cousins were waiting patiently for cake.

"Make a wish, Vic!" Uncle George yelled, happily. "And make it a good one!"

And when Vicky finally blew out her candles, Uncle George set off his infamous fireworks and I felt like the only person who'd jumped. Bursts of reds and greens and bright yellow filled the sky and everyone cheered. Even Malfoy, who had the emotional range of a teaspoon, looked genuinely happy.

Then he had to notice me looking at him, of course.

"Weasley, I know I'm attractive, there's no need to look like you're about to drool over me."

O grade arsehole, Mr Scorpius Malfoy, ladies and gentlemen.

"You know, I wonder how you even get girls to look in your direction," I scoffed. "You're about as charming as a blast-ended skrewt."  
Malfoy rolled his eyes and I resisted beating him with my shoe.

Second update of the night: it wasn't until now, four years after meeting him, that I had noticed that Malfoy's eyes were actually blue. Not grey. Didn't know what to do with this information.

"Photo time!" Hugo suddenly called out and I cringed, both internally and externally. My brother came bounding over, ginger hair in his eyes and with a glint in his eyes that reminded me of my Dad, shoving Malfoy and I together. "Photo of the unhappy couple!"

The bright flash caught me by surprised and my eyes squinted. And when Hugo had started to laugh, I knew in an instant that it was an awful photo. Malfoy hadn't even flinched. And when I'd finally wrestled the camera away from Hugo, I felt ill. Malfoy looked picture perfect, beaming and completely natural. I, on the other hand, looked like I'd been forced to eat dragon dung. My face was screwed up and I had one blurred arm where I'd gone to shield my eyes from the light.

Splendid. This is why I'm not sociable in the slightest.

"You look like you've swallowed a bludger."

"Costs nothing to be nice, Malfoy."

"I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

Someone was knocking on the door.

"Rosie! Al and that Malfoy kid are at the door!"

Okay, correction: Al and Malfoy were at the door. As confirmed by my only ally in my feud with Malfoy: my Dad. He had never warmed up to him.  
When I didn't answer, he yelled up the stairs again, "Come on, Rosie. They're your friends! I'm not your house elf!"

Update: there was no way in hell I was going down stairs.

But alas, a higher power was definitely not siding with me that day and I could hear two pairs of footsteps stomping up the staircase. Bloody hell. My Dad had it out for me.

"You know which room is hers, Al."

MERLIN'S BEARD. See, he definitely has it in for me. Now Scorpius Malfoy was going to see me in an old Quidditch shirt and shorts with a rat's nest and a severe case of resting bitch face.

I really was contemplating jumping out of the window. I'd have a soft sort of landing into the grass of our garden. Anything was going to be better than the awkward conversation that was gonna go down. Seriously, it wasn't even nine in the morning and I was already contemplating suicide. This is not good.

Before I could even try to run a brush through my hair or cover my bare legs, the two of them swung open my door and were suddenly basking in my not so pretty morning glory. Malfoy looked pretty put out but Al looked like this was a normal occurrence. Not only was I not looking my best, but my tiny box room was really untidy. And I was hyper aware that Malfoy had never seen this aspect of my life. The room was pale yellow and could barely fit a double bed in; my trunk was pressed up against my wardrobe in a state of disarray overflowing with textbooks and clothes and other things I thought I needed. There were so many photos pinned to my wall. And, aside from my appearance, I was hoping he wouldn't come too close.

My morning breath could peel paint of the walls.

"We were coming to see if you fancied a walk into town, but I see that you're really not prepared for that." Al clearly woke up feeling sassy this morning. "You look terrible."

"What else did you expect? I didn't even come downstairs, I clearly didn't want to see either of you."

"Is that any way to talk to the love of your life and your cousin?" Seriously, I was not in the mood for Malfoy and him thinking he's hilarious. Malfoy being here was terrible. The only thing not terrible was the idea of going back to sleep.

"Malfoy, I am one sassy comment away from kicking you in the face."

I'll say it again, mornings are terrible and I was not in the mood for this. Hence why I flopped back down onto my bed and hoped they both would magically disappear and let me go back to sleep.

"Don't be like that, Rosie."

Update: They did not obey my wishes and both perched themselves on the end of my daisy printed duvet. Clearly the three of us had not developed a telepathic link. Not that I wanted one with Malfoy. In other words: I didn't want them anywhere near me.

"Piss off." That was me, Rose Weasley; wordsmith, brainiac and complete nightmare.

"Come on, Weasley, get up." My patience was running thin and they knew it. "I'll buy you breakfast."

Screw you, Malfoy. He drove a hard bargain. If there was anything that could sway my view, it was food. Particularly the promise of breakfast and the notion of him paying. However, I still ignored him.

"Rosieeeeeeeeeeeee, pleaaaaase." My patience had finally been shaved into an unsalvageable line. Al had started to prod me in the side with his bony fingers. "You're meant to love me, I'm your cousin and you're supposed to want to spend time with me."

"If you don't piss off, I'll kill you." Again, that was me. Anything remotely unkind (read: threatening) was usually said by me. "In fact, I won't kill you. I'll feed you to a blast ended skrewt."

"Weasley, get up and get dressed." Malfoy was using his serious voice now and I actually cracked open an eye to look at him. He looked 1000x better than I did (not that it took much right now) in muggle clothes; a pair of tight jeans and a black t-shirt. He always looked effortlessly good with his messy blonde hair and I hated it. Oh woe is me. "I'm actually offering to pay for your food, the least you could do is accept. It's only breakfast. No string attached. Plus, Al wants to look around that muggle joke shop. This is a win-win situation for all of us."

After a good half an hour of deliberating, I actually managed to get out of bed. This was after the two pricks had ground the remaining strands of my patience into nothing but irritation and tiredness. I took a quick shower, actually brushed my hair and dressed in my usual jeans and a flannel shirt. When I emerged from the bathroom, I found Malfoy engrossed in a muggle novel (yes, you read right) and Al was staring aimlessly at the photos on the wall.

"This is absolutely ridiculous," Malfoy said when he noticed me, gesturing to the book in his hand, sparing me a look before reading it again.

Sure, it wasn't the best but I liked cheesy romance as much as the next person. "Why would you want to read this?"

"I'll tell you what else if absolutely ridiculous?" I busied myself with tying my shoe lace and locating my coin purse and wand. "You two coming to my house to drag me out of bed. This isn't Hogwarts, I'm not usually up at this time."

"You know you love us." Albus Severus, ever the optimist.

"Trust me, Weasley, this isn't my idea of a good time," Malfoy had finally put my book back onto my bedside table, rolling his eyes at me."Contrary to popular belief, it isn't my dream to spend time with you and your bitchy personality and lack of regard for other people's feelings. Yet here we are."

Again, ladies and gentlemen, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, the arsewipe. It's a good job his jibes didn't bother me anymore or my self-esteem would have taken a beating.

"You really do know how to make a girl feel loved," I clasped a hand on my heart, pretending to swoon, before smacking my coin purse off his blonde head. "Bloody toad you are. How the hell are girls even attracted to you? Your personality sucks."

"Rose, don't start-"

"So does yours, Weasley, maybe that's why we're so compatible."

"Actually, I think you'll find the only thing compatible about you and I is the fact my foot is itching to kick you in the throat."

"Rosie!"

Update: Al was fighting a losing battle. I think he got it from Uncle Harry- always the peace keeper- after all those years he had to put up with my Mum and Dad.

"We might have something in common, you never know."

"And I'm interested in finding out."

"Right! Behave the pair of you!" Al suddenly said loudly. "We're going for breakfast now. So quit your fighting or I'll tell Uncle Ron you two were snogging in the bathroom."

I glared but followed him out of my pigsty of a bedroom. Malfoy shut my door which I was grateful for. You never know where Hugo and his weird friends are. I'd once caught one of his friends raking through my underwear drawer and threatened to hex him into next century.  
In the little town we lived in, there wasn't much to do but it was pretty. With big trees and rickety houses and long country lanes. But once we'd bid my Mum and Dad goodbye and made our way to a small hole-in-the-wall cafe that did amazing full English breakfasts, I felt a little bit more awake than usual. There was a bit of a wait so Al (weirdly) decided to trust Malfoy and I to be civil while he rushed to the muggle joke shop round the corner.

"I feel like you're stalking me, Malfoy."

"Yes, Weasley, I'm _totally_ stalking you." Finally, he was growing tired of my shit. The two of us were in a booth in the corner. "Don't think this is my idea of a good time. I'd rather Al and I just played Quidditch at his house."

"Now you've infiltrated my house, I'm going to have to move," I sighed, bitterly. "For Merlin's sake."

"Don't be overdramatic, Weasley, it doesn't suit you." I gawped at him. I was renowned for being overdramatic. Blame my family. They're lunatics. "Stop staring at me with your wonky eye."

Since I'm repeating myself a lot, especially today, I'll say it again; my 'wonky' eye is not that bad. Honestly, it's hardly noticeable. I really don't know why it was such an important factor in my life or anybody else's life for that matter.

"The next person to mention my eye is going to end up in St. Mungo's," I grumbled, covering my eye with my hand. "If I didn't have an overly sized ego, I'd probably cry over it."

"Do you just say the first thing that comes into your head?" Malfoy clearly thought this would offend me. "You need to learn how to have a filter."

"What's the point in having a filter? At least I'm honest. I'd rather be honest and have people not like me, than say something I don't mean and have people to love me for it."

 _Life Lessons 101_ by Rose C. Weasley, coming to a Flourish and Blotts near you.

"Honesty is not always the best policy. It hurts people."

"That's because you can't keep your hands to yourself. New girlfriend every month or so with no attachment. You need a therapist." It had been a word vomit moment. Not that what I was saying wasn't true, but I still hadn't meant for it to sound so harsh. "Wait, that was rude. Doesn't mean it's not the truth. But I'm sorry."

"I think you're refreshing, Weasley."

"Are you complimenting me?"

"More of a backhanded compliment, really, " Malfoy shrugged. "You're not afraid to call anyone out on their bullshit, are you?"

"You can always rely on me for that," I said, happily. "Seriously though, advice from one arsehole to another, you need to sort your shit out. Find some nice, reasonably slutty girl and enjoy life."

And that is when Al decided to join us. He had already ordered at the till and was carrying a huge carrier bag of things. I tried to ignore the fact I'd just given Malfoy advice. Not very good advice, but advice nonetheless. We all ate our breakfasts, talking about fifth year and how we thought it would pan out and eventually, Malfoy actually did pay for all three of us. And at the end of the day, they'd both walked me home and said they'd see me tomorrow (September 1st) on the train.

Update: when I'd returned to my bedroom later that night, it was still in as much mess as it was this morning. And being the unpredictable person I was, I managed to get myself packed and sorted. I think my character was finally developing.

I'd actually packed and closed my trunk and had stood it upright near my door. Billy, my tawny owl, was packed and fed and contently cooing on my desk. My homework was compelted, my robes ironed and immaculate, and even my bed was made properly. Talk about a changed person.

Bring on fifth year. Although I wasn't sure what it would bring with it.


	2. 2: the one with all the surgery talk

**The one with all the surgery talk**

The morning of September 1st was always stressful. It would start with Mum's muggle alarm clock screaming and would end with Hugo and me screaming at each other. Dad tries to gather our trunks together downstairs, dodging me shoving things into my backpack (a good book and a snack, usually) and Hugo stuffing Weasley's Wizardly Wheezes things into his. Then my brother and I trying not to get caught in Mum's shrieks that we're going to be late and her telling Hugo and I to stop fighting over the bathroom. One of us always ends up forgetting something.

But we made it to Kings Cross relatively unscathed (correction: Hugo had bitten me for holding onto his backpack to stop him getting onto the platform and I'd gotten a smacked hand from my Mum) and were both hauling our trunks onto our separate compartments. Al, Malfoy, Sophie and Riley bloody Nott (idiot girl and one of Malfoy's fan girls or whatever) were already waiting for me. I stuck my head out the window to bid my parents, aunties and uncles goodbye.

"Have a good year, Rosie! Write us when you can! Love you!" Dad called, waving and flashing his brilliant smile. Mum was hugging into his side; her eyes watering like they did every year. Aunt Ginny was there with Uncle Harry (AKA: dark wizard slayer) and I knew I would miss them. But the freedom of Hogwarts soothed that.

I had missed the air of mystery of Hogwarts; the teachers; the learning and the library (mostly) and the privacy away from my entire family. Sure, my cousins were at Hogwarts but we all had lives and homework and things to do and actually kept out of each other's way. I would be able to study in peace without Hugo trying to blow up the kitchen and he could blow up some place else with whatever product Uncle George had him testing out at the time.

"Did you and Hugo have a fight again?" Al suddenly said, pointing to the teeth marks on my hand. Yes, he really had bitten me that hard. "I swear the two of you are so violent. It's not normal."

"I wouldn't associate the word 'normal' with Weasley, anyway." That was Riley. I already wanted to surgically remove her face. "Let alone that brother of hers."

"You do know that you're heavily outnumbered here, don't you, Nott?" Sophie laughed. "You do realise that that's Al's cousin and my best friend. It's only because Scorpius vouches for you that we tolerate you."

I had met Sophie Thomas in first year and had loved her (platonically) ever since. She was feisty but level-headed too. She balanced out my neurotic personality quite well. She and I had never gelled well with Riley. No particular reason other that she didn't get when to keep her nose out. When the train pulled out of platform nine and three quarters, Riley had gotten up to find the food cart. As flashes of country side flew by, Al busied himself reading Quidditch through the Ages and Malfoy was just doing what he does best: be a complete arsewipe and staring at me. He did that a lot; I wondered if there was someone I could file a complaint to.

"Hey, you know how you're so interested in my life, Malfoy?"

Malfoy eyed me with narrow eyes. "No, but carry on."

"And how you're going to write novels about me and sing songs about me?"

"Again, no."

"And how you'd do anything for me?"

"Within reason, I suppose."

Update: I hadn't expected him to agree with me on that one. But I'd keep it in mind whenever I needed an alibi.

"If you don't stop staring at me, it's gonna take one wrong move away from me removing your head from your body," I spat, throwing my legs onto the seat in front of me. Al wasn't even paying attention. Neither was Sophie, she was studying already. "You'll need an excellent surgeon to put you back together."

"You're so hostile, Rose." That was Sophie who sounded like she couldn't give a shit. Then she added, "I love it."

"Aw, Rosie, you're so kind," Malfoy leaned over and grabbed my cheeks and squished them. Literally, in a matter of two seconds, I full on donkey kicked him away from me. I felt like I was in some muggle action movie. It's a good job we had company or I would have roundhouse kicked him into the next year. Him and his silly smirk. He had landed back into his seat with a flop and I smiled as sweetly as possible.

"No wonder people think we have chemistry," Malfoy merely smirked from the floor. It was that smirk that made me wonder how much I'd have to pay a healer to surgically remove it from his face. I narrowed my eyes but remained silent. Correction: 'I don't really know what he means by 'people'. "We're just meant to be together."

"I tell you what's mean to be together, my foot down your throat," I snapped. Malfoy laughed like it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard. Which was cool and everything, but I could see his tonsils and they looked as big and conceited as he did. "You think I'm joking and you're laughing no, but one day you're going to go missing and I'll happen to have a body bag shoved in my trunk."

"Be nice, Rosie," Al finally joined the land of reality, looking up from his book, obviously realising his friend was in need of assistance. "Pack it in, Scorpius, or you really will end up dead. You'd think you'd learn not to rile her up after all these years."

"I like riling her up. She's feisty. The feisty ones are fun. They make the chase better."

This time I really did aim for his throat. Leaning back in my seat and trying to connect my foot to his neck. He caught my foot (in hindsight, I should have seen it coming) and I landed with a thump on the floor.

BLOODY PRICK.

"Malfoy! You can't do that to a lady! Did your parents teach you no manners?" The voice of my older cousin and Al's brother, James, came from the doorway. I was on the floor between the seats feeling murderous. He was the messiest haired Potter child; black, thick hair and glasses like his father.

"He's borderline assaulting me!" I scrambled from the floor, dusting dust of my robes in a huff.

"Borderline? He must try harder then!" James cackled. Like literally cackled before disappearing. Another member of my family on my hit list. I wanted to chase after him and kick him.

Correction: I wanted to hire a hit man to take him and Malfoy out at once. I wouldn't even waste the time and effort murdering them myself. Neither of them deserved that much.

Malfoy soon got bored and pulled out some exploding snap cards and struck up a game with Al, leaving me to my murderous thoughts. And somehow, don't ask me how because it's never happened before, but somehow I fell asleep. One minute I was watching out the window thinking how easy my life would be if I was someone else or if Malfoy didn't exist, the next I was curled up in the corner by the window, fast asleep. And nobody thought to wake me for two hours.

"Weasley, wake up."

Yeah, update: I woke with a start and knew for a fact I'd been drooling. I could tell. My mouth placement was all wrong.  
(Innuendo number one).

"Come on, we're nearly at Hogwarts."

Finally, wiping my mouth with my hand, I opened my eyes to find Malfoy closer than what was to be considered comfortable. I was still curled in a ball.

"Get out of my face if you know what's good for you," I muttered, and he did what I said, I stretched my arms over my head and rolled my neck. "I can't believe I ended up falling asleep."

"Nothing interesting happened," Al reassured, packing away his books and running a hand through his scraggy black hair. He looked like he could do with a two hour nap, too. "Sophie's gone to talk to some Slytherin guy she fancies. She told me to tell you that you look weird when you sleep."

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks for waking me up, by the way," I mumbled in Malfoy's direction. "I still want to kick you in the face though."

"I wouldn't mind being kicked in the face by you."

For a second, my head whipped around to look at him but found him smirking like an idiot. It didn't take long for me to scoff and look away.

"At least I'd know I deserved it."

Honestly, he didn't even warrant a response. And when the train finally came to a standstill at Hogsmede station, I gathered all my things, only to notice it was raining. Thick sheets of rain were falling, soaking every single person on the way to their carriages (or if they were really unlucky, the boats) and I shoved my mass of hair into the hood of my robe, kept close to Sophie and made my way to a carriage. The carriages smelled of musk and hay. Which wasn't pleasant but I was too excited to notice. I was coming home, nothing could make me unhappy. Hogwarts is where I belonged.

Correction: the only thing that could make me unhappy is if a healer couldn't help me remove the smirk that seemed to be forever gracing Malfoy's features. Seriously, does he know how to smile?

Being back at the Ravenclaw table- albeit a little bit soaked from the rain- and away from Malfoy, munching happily on carrots and mashed potato, I was the happiest I'd been in weeks. Sure, fifth year was filled with O. and probably more drama that I want to be involved with, but that's okay because I'm Rose flipping Weasley and 'survivor' may as well be my middle name.

"How was your summer then, Sophie?" I asked conversationally, since we hadn't done much talking on the train. "You went to France, right?"

"Yeah, it was okay. Lots of fit blokes, too many mock tails and I ran out of books in the first week."

"How many did you take?"

"10," Sophie grinned. Sophie and I shared our love of books in common. She loved cliché romance novels as much as I did. Malfoy just didn't know what he was talking about. "I see you and Malfoy are no closer to being friends?"

"It's been four years, if it hasn't happened by now, it ain't gonna," I shrugged, trying to smooth my now frizzy hair down. It wasn't working. I looked like I was half poodle. "I hate the bloke. Just when I think he's an alright person, he has to go and prove me wrong."

Sophie and I both look across to the Gryffindor table to see him and Al already talking to a group of girls. Well, I say Al is, but in reality Al can flirt as well as a dung beetle. He's a bit like Uncle Harry and my Dad: completely clueless when it comes to women. But for as long as I've known him, Malfoy has always charmed girls. Of course, you'd have to have no eyes to think he was unattractive but his attitude towards me was always the same; droll, sarcastic and bordering annoying. Or maybe he just reserved that side of him for me, I wasn't entirely sure. He wasn't that easy to read.

"I think it's just sexual tension." Kat Mundell suddenly piped up from across the table. She was our year, muggleborns and sweet. Or at least I thought she was. She was probably about to prove me wrong. "I think one good shag and you'd be fine-"

"Don't ever mention me, Malfoy and shagging in the same sentence again!" I exclaimed, a little too loudly, absolutely aghast. Maybe my reaction was melodramatic but it didn't make it any less true. "I'd rather chew my own foot off."

"You might be onto something here, Kat," Sophie said, wriggling her eyebrows. I shot her a deathly glare, wondering if it would be acceptable to add her onto my hit list. Merlin, this list is gonna be the length of my arm before this year is out. "How about we make it interesting?"

"Define 'interesting'?" Kat giggled and I had to resist the urge to roll my eyes so hard that they would probably fall out of my head and into the gold platter of chicken drumsticks. "Don't give me that look, Rose."

Again, I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Kat was definitely on the hit list. Whatever Sophie said next would seal her fate.

"How about we place a bet?" Sophie chuckled, risking a glance at me. She was met with a steely look. She'd sealed her fate. There was no turning back now.

"Before the year is out, I bet you and Scorpius come out with some sort of feelings for each other. 10 galleons for the winner. Your turn, Kat!"

Update: I really wasn't surprised she was taking bets on my love life. It had been pretty baron. The only person who had taken interest in third year was promptly frightened off by my older cousins. The only constant men in my life were my Dad, my uncles, my cousins, my owl and Scorpius bloody Malfoy. Clearly my love life was lacking.

"I bet you and Malfoy will have shagged by the end of the year. I don't doubt it. There's tension-"

"The only tension there is between the two of us is me physically trying to stop myself from shoving him off the astronomy tower."

"-10 galleons, I say. I'm hoping you'll pull through, Rose."

Honest to Merlin, the only think that's pulling through this year is my anger issues. They're increasing by the second. So far though, I'm gonna be 20 galleons richer by the end of the year and considering if I manage to get outstanding exam results, I'm in for a winner. For some reason, I've zoned out and I'm thinking about swimming in a pool filled with galleons and then I hear the next words to come out of Kat's mouth and want to throttle her.

"That is, if he can look past your wonky eye-"

"That's it!" I suddenly find myself screaming, eyes wide and ignoring people's shocked faces. Though it was no surprise I was freaking out. That's just who I was. "One more flipping person mentions my eye and I'm going to go on a killing spree. Madame Pomphrey won't be able to save you! She won't! And if she does, I'll double murder you. My god, I'm Rose Weasley and I have a wonky eye. It's not my wonky eye featuring Rose Weasley! Honest to Merlin, worry about you!"

Kat seems unperturbed from my outburst, merely looking at me with vague interest. I can tell from the heat crawling up my neck to my cheeks that I'm a little more stressed than usual. But that's alright because I feel a little better already. Sophie's already grabbed my arm to stop me from reaching for my wand and I'm pretty sure everyone in the hall is regarding me with curious glances and probably wondering which asylum I escaped from and when I'm going back. I catch Malfoy's eye and he's shaking with laughter.

"Rosie, you're so much more than your wonky eye," Sophie is saying to me, but I'm too busy wondering if there is any possibility of getting plastic surgery on my eye. Maybe move it into a better position or make it even. Something, anything, to stop people bringing it up. "You're one of the prettiest girls in this schoolwithout even trying."

Update: Sophie was trying to make me feel better. It half worked.

In seriousness, though, although my ego was above the average girl and I probably hadn't been doing this whole 'being a girl' thing right my entire life (who can blame me when my Mum loves books and my Dad had us in Chudley Cannons pyjamas before we could even walk) but I had the usual insecurities of the average girl. Sure, I wasn't completely obsessed with how I looked. I was taller than average; I knew my hair was wild and controllable and bright red; I knew my eye was a little weird; I knew I was a little bit gangly and a little on the thin side and my boobs hadn't come through as well as other girls and I doubted they ever would and I knew that I had more freckle than face. But I was a believer that there are better things to worry about. So what; I didn't roll out of bed looking put together and I didn't really care if my muggle clothes were of high fashion and I'd much rather be at a Quidditch match with my Dad or reading a book in my room than doing much else. I was Rose Weasley and I wasn't that bad.

So when dinner was over and we were all back in Ravenclaw tower, our things in our drawers and hot water bottles in our beds, suddenly being Rose Weasley wasn't bad at all. I changed into a pair of Chudley Cannons pyjamas and curled into bed, drawing the hangings after saying goodnight, with my cliché novel _The Taming of the Shrew_.

* * *

All at once, it was like the person I'd become in the summer was gone and had been replaced with someone else. Like a snake shedding its skin. Gone were the late mornings and scruffy hair and not getting a shower till noon. I was up at 7am, showered, in my uniform (cute skirt and tights included) with my hair tied back into a ponytail, my bag on my back with my timetable (they'd been pinned to our hangings last night) and books in and I was ready. It's like my body knew I was back at Hogwarts. My brain was already whirring and I was more than ready to dive back into classes. I'd taken Defence against the Dark Arts, Potions, Transfiguration, Runes and Muggle Studies, all in preparation for the future.

"I can't believe you're actually alive at this hour," Al gasped when he saw me in the entrance hall before breakfast. "Merlin, you must be back at Hogwarts."

"She'll need all the help she can get, since I'm determined to beat her at Defence," Malfoy said, cockily and I shook my head. "What're you shaking your head at, Weasley? It's going to happen."

"Over my dead body," I replied as firmly as I could. It was still so weird that Malfoy was stood in front of me in a red and gold striped tie. I had been so sure he'd be in Slytherin. Call me prejudiced. Blame my Dad. "And don't say 'that could be arranged' because that's dung. I could easily take you, Malfoy. Any day. Name a time and a place and I'll beat your ass to the ground."

"I also forgot that you get more and more vicious with every passing year." That was Al, sounding so exasperated and done with this year already. "Why do I get the feeling this year is already going to be too much?"

The three of us had already started to walk into the great hall. Several people were already pouring over their text books and most were simply stuffing their faces. The latter seemed like the best option; I'd been ignoring my grumbling stomach for the past hour. And for once, I joined Al and Malfoy at the Gryffindor table where everyone was already talking about Quidditch. Although I wasn't a player myself, having the hand-eye coordination of a sloth, a lot of my family were. For Gryffindor, James played beater, Al played seeker, Dominique was chaser and Louis was keeper. Even Malfoy played on the team, taking his position as second beater very seriously. So, when it came to it, I supported Gryffindor due to the notion (as once said to me by Louis) 'blood is thicker than house water'. And it had only been recently that James had been elected captain.

But as they talked away about positioning and how many points they needed to claim the Quidditch House Cup, I couldn't help but feel like I had nothing to add. There was something very different about watching Quidditch and actually playing it. Sure, I knew the theory but couldn't execute that theory.

"You look a bit left out, Rosie," Dominique suddenly whispered to me, she had sat next to me, looking at me a little funnily. "Are you okay?"

Caught off guard, I mumbled, "Oh, sure, I'm fine. Just thinking."

Update: biggest load of dung to come out of my mouth.

* * *

R&R please!


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